


Set Me Free

by Ultimate_Fangirl_0312



Category: Persona 3, Persona 5
Genre: Angst, M/M, protagshipping
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-07-15
Updated: 2020-09-30
Packaged: 2021-03-04 22:49:16
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 13
Words: 11,468
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25164193
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Ultimate_Fangirl_0312/pseuds/Ultimate_Fangirl_0312
Summary: Minato Arisato arrives in Shibuya with his friends for summer vacation and isn't all that excited. However,when getting lost leads to meeting a special someone in a corner cafe, he realizes that he's fallen in love. Will he be able to let go of her fears or will they haunt his first romantic relation?
Relationships: Arisato Minato/Kurusu Akira, Persona 3 Protagonist/Persona 5 Protagonist
Comments: 28
Kudos: 78





	1. Summer Vacation

Minato Arisato was sleeping against the window of his train seat, as the curtain blocked the view so he didn't get any sunlight. His headphones were in to make sure he didn't get disturbed. Suddenly he was shaken awake by a certain someone.

"Dude! Wake up, we're almost there!" Junpei's familiar voice said as Minato sighed, yawning as he opened his curtain to see the buildings of Shibuya in the distance as they arrived at Yongen-Jaya, where their hotel was supposed to be located. Minato sighed, taking his headphones off and grabbing his stuff as they arrived and got off.

"Alright guys, our hotel isn't too far away, so let's stick together, and try not to get lost," Mitsuru said as they all began walking into the city. It was quite busy despite it being summer vacation as they headed out of the station. Minato was amazed, it was nothing like Tatsumi Port Island. Luckily he managed to stick together with the others as they arrived at their hotel. Mitsuru took care of the room as everyone else gathered around to chat.

"Oh boy there's so much to do, where do we even begin?" Yukari asked.

"Mitsuru suggested we followed a plan, but I think we're better off doing our own thing," Akihikosaid.

"Agreed, there are so many hot girls to find!" Junpei said.

"I want to take a look at the food! I heard there's a variety of cuisine here" Ken suggested as Mitsuru came back with everyone's keys.

"Alright everyone, the guys and girls room are on different floors for obvious reasons," She said glaring at Junpei. "I'll give you your keys and you can head to your room. Your bags should be up in your rooms already. Take today off to relax and tomorrow we'll meet up in the morning to look around."

Everyone nodded as they each got their own room key and headed to their room.

Minato arrived in his room as he sighed lying on the bed. They took this summer vacation here to get away from Persona stuff, but Minato figured it wasn't going to be all that exciting, just like their last vacation in Yakushima. What Minato didn't realize was that this vacation was going to be a lot more interesting than he ever expected.


	2. The Corner Cafe

The next day, Minato woke up early due to a phone call Mitsuru sent to everyone, as he got up with a yawn and got ready for the day. He headed downstairs to the front lobby where Mitsuru was there, along with Yukari, who seemed to have gotten ready quickly.

"Good morning Minato, glad to see you have gotten ready quickly, unlike the others," Mitsuru said.

"I'm pretty sure everyone's tired, it's really early," Yukari said with a yawn.

Soon everyone had arrived one by one to the lobby. After having breakfast at the hotel, they agreed to explore Yongen-Jaya for just the day before going on to anywhere else. They headed out, the sun shining, as it was a warm summer day. Minato tried to stay with the group but it was pretty hard, as there were so many people around. He eventually ended up getting lost in a smaller part of Yongen-Jaya, in an alleyway. He decided to look around, knowing he could find his way back later, plus it would be good to learn more about the area. He found a couple of interesting places, including a medical clinic, a batting cage, a movie theatre, and a bathhouse. He made sure to remember to take Junpei to the batting cage next time. While walking, he also found a small cafe named Leblanc. Since he woke up early, he was still kinda tired and a cup of coffee could help. He decided to enter the cafe.

It was a nice cozy place with dark wood tables and chairs, and the smell of fresh-brewed coffee filling the air. Behind the serving table were two people. An older man with glasses and a younger guy, almost around his age with messy black hair and glasses too. He couldn't help but admire the younger boy, he was cute.

"Ah, welcome to Leblanc, how can I help you?" The older man asked.

"Ah...just a black coffee please," Minato said, taking a seat at the table. Good thing he brought his wallet with him.

"You got it," The man said as he worked on the coffee at that time. The younger boy looked at Minato and decided to spark conversation.

"You don't look like you're from around here," The boy said.

"Yeah, I'm not, I'm on vacation with my friends," Minato explained.

"Ah, where are you from?" The older man said, joining their conversation while brewing the coffee

"Tatsumi Port Island," Minato said which shocked both of them.

"Woah, that's far," The older man said as he gave him his coffee.

Minato thanked him before taking a sip of the coffee and was surprised by it. It was amazing, nothing like anything he tasted.

"Wow, this is good," Minato complimented.

"Thanks, I like to say I'm a man of my craft," The older man said. "Ah, my name is Sojiro, and this here is Akira. I'm his guardian" Sojiro said.

"Nice to meet you both," Minato said with a smile.

"You too," Akira said with a smile.

Sojiro headed back, realizing he was out of a couple of things. "Hey Akira, can you handle taking care of the orders until I get back? I need to get a couple of things" Sojiro said, getting his coat.

"Yeah sure," Akira said as Sojiro headed off, leaving the two teens together. Minato decided to watch the news that was playing.

"In the latest news, the Phantom Thieves haven't started any new plans yet since their last target of Kunikazu Okurmura, the leader of the famous Okurmura Food Company '' The news reporter explained.

"Phantom Thieves...?" Minato thought confused. What was that? Maybe Akira would know. "Hey Akira, do you know about these Phantom Thieves?"

Akira was cleaning some cups when he asked that. "Well, not a lot, but they're a crime-fighting group that vows to "steal the heart of the twisted adults". They make bad people confess their crimes. They've been popular a lot, they made at least 4 people confess at this point" Akira explained.

"I see, I wonder how they do it," Minato questioned.

"Who knows, no-one has figured it out," Akira said, wiping the table down as Minato finished his coffee, paying for it.

"He seems cute...and kind. Maybe he could help me find his way back to the hotel" Minato thought. "Hey, I know we just met, but I need some help..." Minato asked.

"Oh? What kind of help?" Akira asked.

"You see, I was here with my friends, but I got lost while looking around with them. I'm not sure how to get back to my hotel, and you seem like you've been here a while, so if you could help me, it would be great" Minato said.

"Sure, let's just wait for Sojiro to get back and then we can get going. Can you tell me the name of the hotel?" Akira asked.

"Ah, the Sankara Hotel" Minato said as Sojiro just arrived back with the supplies.

"Hey Sojiro, is it alright if I help him out? He needs help getting somewhere" Akira explained.

"Well, sure, but you better come back quick. I need your help today" Sojiro said as Akira nodded, putting his apron away and heading to grab something from upstairs.

Morgana had just woken up from a nap when Akira arrived upstairs. "Where are you off to?" He asked.

"I'm helping someone out to find their hotel out, wanna join?" Akira asked.

"Nah, you'll be back soon anyway," Morgana said as Akira went back downstairs. "Alright, let's go," Akira said as they both headed out. Luckily Akira knew where that hotel was, seeing it while he explored around when he came here, and in 10 minutes flat, they were back.

"Here we are," Akira said.

"Thanks again, that meant a lot," Minato said. Now he was trying to find out how to get his number without seeming weird when his thoughts were interrupted by someone calling him.

"Minato!" Yukari said as she, Junpei and Fuuka went over to them.

"There you are dude, we split up with the others to get lunch when we realized you weren't with us! We came back here to see if you came back and were going to call you, but it looks like you're okay. Thank god!" Junpei said.

Fuuka then noticed Akira with him. "W-Whose this?" She asked.

"Ah, my name is Akira, I helped out with getting back here," He said with a smile.

This surprised the three as Akira looked confused as the three whispered things to one another.

"Ah...did I do something wrong?" Akira asked Minato.

"No, you're fine. Guys, what are you whispering about?" Minato asked, a bit annoyed.

"You never ask for help, ever!" Yukari exclaimed. "So there has to be a reason you wanted to get help from him in particular."

"H-Huh?" Akira was still very much confused. "What does that mean?"

"You must think he's cute!" Junpei said as Akira and Minato blushed. "J-Junpei!" Minato said as he attempted to chase after him while Yukari and Fuuka talked to Akira.

"H-He thinks I'm cute," Akira said blushing.

"Well he's quite stubborn, he doesn't like getting help, so we figured that would make sense," Fuuka said.

"Here," Yukari said, giving him Minato's number. "He'll be too shy to give you his number, so we'll give it to you!"

"Oh, thanks," Akira said, saving the number under "Minato" on his phone.

"We should probably stop him from hurting Junpei, we'll hopefully see you later!" Yukari said as they ran off to stop Minato from killing Junpei.

Akira headed off home, thinking about Minato. "I won't lie..he is cute too," Akira thought, wanting to get to know him.

Soon Akira arrived home and continued helping out Sojiro for the day. After he was done with his shift, he took the chance to text Minato.

_Akira: Hey Minato, this is Akira, from the cafe. Your friends gave me your number so I wanted to say hi._

Minato was in his room when he saw the message and blushed. He actually had his number?! He had forgot to ask him earlier due to chasing Junpei

_Minato: Ah hey. I was going to ask for your number but I got distracted._

Akira couldn't help but chuckle.

_Akira: It's fine. If you need any help with anything, feel free to ask. I'm pretty familiar with the area._

Minato thought for a second. It would be nice to learn more about the area, and Akira would know what's best around here, as he's been here for a while.

_Minato: Actually, are you free tomorrow? I want to explore around and find some good places._

_Akira: Yeah sure, I'll meet you at the hotel in the morning._

_Minato: Great, see you then._

Akira smiled, putting his phone down as Morgana was on his lap.

"Who are you texting?" Morgana asked.

"Ah, the boy I helped out today. He wants to meet up tomorrow to explore the area" Akira said.

"You're taking a real interest in him, despite meeting him today," Morgana said.

"He thinks I'm cute," Akira said with a blush and smile.

"Ahhh that's why. Anyway, you should go to sleep early tonight, so that you're ready for tomorrow" Morgana said as Akira nodded.


	3. Tour Guide

The next day, Minato got up and got ready to meet up with Akira as he headed downstairs to see everyone talking in the main foyer.

"Ah, Minato you're here, we were planning on exploring Shibuya today" Mitsuru explained as Minato shook his head.

"I won't be joining you, I have my own plans," Minato explained.

"Already?? We just got here" Akikhiko said. "What do you have planned?"

"I got myself a tour guide," Minato said. "I met him yesterday as he helped me explore the area."

Junpei gasped. "It's Akira, isn't it!? You already got a boyfriend?!" Junpei teased before being smacked in the head by Minato.

"He's not my boyfriend, just a guy I met," Minato said before being cut off by a familiar voice.

"Hey Minato," Akira said as he arrived, seeing him talking to the others. "Am I disturbing something?" He asked.

"Ah no, we were just on our way," Yukari said, pushing everyone out as they waved at them, leaving the two alone. Minato then noticed the cat in Akira's bag.

"Is that a cat??" Minato said with excited eyes as Morgana popped out.

"Ah yeah, he's my pet, Morgana. I bring him when I go out usually" Akira said.

"I'm not a pet!" Morgana said as Minato petted him. Minato, of course, couldn't hear him speak normally as he petted him.

"So soft..." Minato said with a smile as Morgana enjoyed the petting

"Anyway, shall we get going?" Akira asked as Minato blushed due to getting distracted by his cat.

"Y-Yeah! Sorry" Minato said as they headed out, first to Akihabara, where it was best known for the electronics, video games, and anime & manga shops. After finding some places there, they took the train back to Shibuya to look around there.

"Wow...there's so many stores and places here, it's nothing like Tatsumi Port Island," Minato said.

"That's the city life for you," Akira said with a smile as he heard someone call his name

"Akira!" Ann said as she, Yusuke and Ryuji came over.

"Hey dude, glad we found you here, we were going call you up to hang out!" Ryuji said with a smile.

"Oh, who is this Akira?" Yusuke asked noticing Minato

"Ah, this is Minato, I'm showing him around the area as he's here on vacation," Akira explained.

"It's nice to meet you," Minato said with a smile.

"Awww he's so cute, and small" Ann said with a smile as Minato blushed at that.

"You always help everyone, don't you Akira?" Yusuke asked.

"Well it's in my nature," Akira said with a small blush which Ryuji noticed but didn't comment on.

"Well we should leave you guys be, we'll see you later!" Ryuji said as they all headed off, waving at Minato and Akira.

"You seemed to have nice friends," Minato pointed out.

"Yeah, they're good people," Akira said.

Meanwhile, once Yusuke, Ryuji and Ann got far away, they couldn't help but talk about Minato.

"Do you think Akira likes him??" Ryuji asked.

"He was blushing when talking about him, I think he does," Yusuke said.

"I can see why, he's very cute," Ann said as they agreed to tell the others about this.

After exploring around, it was getting late, so Akira took Minato home.

"This was fun, thanks for helping me out again," Minato said.

"No problem, if you wanna hang out again, you have my number, feel free to text me," Akira said. "I'll see you later," Akira said with a smile heading out.

Minato waved, blushing. He was falling hard for this guy.


	4. Meeting the Thieves

For the next week or so, Minato continued seeing Akira whenever he was available and texted him when he could. He however was teased non-stop by his friends that he liked him, but Minato never admitted to them despite how obvious it was.

It was a regular day, as Minato decided to take it for himself, walking around, buying a couple of things and just relaxing with his music. While taking the train to Shibuya, he noticed Akira and some of his friends he saw the other day hanging out near the station. There were more people than he remembered seeing but he knew some of them. He walked over, planning to say hi to Akira, but suddenly, red and black filled his vision as his head started pounding. He gripped it, confused by what was happening. Once the pain went away, he looked and knew he wasn't where he was before. Everything was darker, and no-one was around. Where were they?? He heard voices and hid behind a pillar looking at the direction of where the voices came from. In place of where Akira was with his friends, stood people in costumes and masks. He recognized some of their voices and the costumes from the news.

"Those....are the Phantom Thieves...Akira is a Phantom Thief?" Minato thought with shock as he saw Morgana turned into a bus, as the others got inside and headed down. Minato decided to follow, wanting to see what they did here. He, of course, wasn't as fast as Morgana and couldn't catch up to them. He suddenly heard noises and turned around as his eyes widened, seeing a shadow.

"A-A shadow!?" Minato thought with shock. How could it be?? He didn't think shadows summoned anywhere else other than the Dark Hour and Tartarus. He knew this place was special for sure. Luckily in his bag, he had his evoker, since he didn't want to leave it in the dorms. He was worried it might not work,as it only worked during the Dark Hour but he needed to try, otherwise, he might get killed. He pointed the gun to his head, focusing his attention.

"Persona!" Minato said as he shot the gun, feeling the same burst of power he felt when he first summoned his persona as Orpheus appeared, attacking the Shadows with his weapon and fire, killing it in a couple turns. Minato took some deep breaths. It was a bit tiring as he hasn't used his persona in a while but still was able to luckily. He knew he needed answers, and the Phantom Thieves seemed like the only ones he could go to. He didn't have a physical weapon so he would have to be careful when going down.

Minato continued his way down, fighting a couple more Shadows, but luckily he could still use many of his personas. He avoided most of them as he soon arrived at a giant door that was opened as he carefully snuck it, seeing the Phantom Thieves. They seemed to be low on HP due to the huge shadow in front of them.

"You guys need to retreat, this Shadow is too strong" A girl with orange hair and goggles said to the others.

"Not yet! We can handle this" A brown-haired girl with spikes exclaimed getting up. He knew that they needed help, and maybe with the boss focused on them, he could attack.

"Come, Rangda!" Minato said shooting himself in the head, summoning Rangda as it used Tentarafoo to confuse the enemy and luckily, despite having a 30% chance, it worked!

Everyone was shocked,seeing Minato out of nowhere and using a Persona too?!

"Now's your chance, it's confused guys!" The orange-haired girl said as Akira used Arsene to knock it down before finishing it with an all-out attack, killing it off.

Minato was out of breath, he really overused his power, especially after not using it for a while. After they finished it off, everyone stared at Minato, which got him nervous.

"Joker, isn't that the guy you know?" The girl in a red suit, who he assumed was Ann judging by her voice.

"You're....Akira right?" Minato asked, putting his gun away as it shocked everyone.

"He knows who you are??" A girl with a black mask and poofy hair said.

"I know a couple of you, by your voices. The girl in red is Ann, the guy with the skull mask is Ryuji, the fox mask is Yusuke, and the cat must be Morgana" Minato said.

Akira knew there wasn't any hiding it. He did have a persona too. "Yeah, you're right, it's us," Akira said, taking off his mask to reveal his face. Minato internally cursed himself,as Akira was even hotter in this outfit.

"You guys are the Phantom Thieves? And you can use personas??" Minato asked.

"Yeah, we can. How are you able to use personas??" The brown-haired girl asked.

Minato was going to respond but suddenly, he felt dizzy as he gripped his head. Using his power like that was clearly too much for him as he felt his legs give in.

"Woah-!" Akira rushed over and managed to catch him by the waist before he hit the ground. "You okay??"

"Y-Yeah.." He said blushing as the feel of Akira's hand on his waist. "I haven't used my Persona in a while, so I'm a bit dizzy" He explained as Akira helped him on his feet.

"We should head out, we can explain everything later" Ann suggested as everyone nodded. They all headed back to the entrance, Yusuke offering Minato something to drink to help with his energy as he took it with a simple "thanks". Minato also got the names of the others, which were Makoto, Haru and Futaba and introduced himself to the others.


	5. Wildcard to Wildcard

After getting out of Mementos, they headed to Leblanc, where Sojiro was confused when everyone suddenly arrived.

"Sorry for intruding," Ann said as they came in

"We're having a quick meet up in my room," Akira explained.

"Alright, but make sure not to make a mess up there. I'll be leaving soon, so lock up once your friends leave" Sojiro said.

Akira nodded as they headed up to Akira's room. There was an extra chair for Minato to sit down as they all got comfy.

"So who should go first in explaining their story?" Ryuji asked.

"I will'' Minato said. They did deserve to know. "So I live in Tatsumi Port Island and I was here on vacation. By accident, I got lost and found Leblanc, where I met Akira that day. He helped me get back to my friends and we decided to chat and hang out" He began explaining.

"Yeah, you were with him the other day," Yusuke said

"Before I explain my power,I should ask, do you think there are more than 24 hours?" Minato asked which confused everyone. "Don't ask why, just answer the question."

"I...don't think so," Morgana said.

"Is that even possible?" Makoto asked.

"Not normally, but it is possible. There's a 25th hour, known as the dark hour. It takes place at 12 am which links it to the next day. Nobody notices it as everyone is protected by their coffins, which they are asleep in" This fact scared all of them

"Coffins...?" Haru said.

"That sounds terrifying," Yusuke said.

"Kinda is. During this time, people with the "potential" or the ability to use a persona aren't in coffins. We gather together and attempt to fight these shadows. They mostly are in this building called Tartarus, which appears during the Dark Hour" Minato explained.

"Huh..kinda like Memotoes, except we can go there whenever," Akira said.

"But what's with the gun??" Futaba asked.

"Ah, yeah," Minato said, pulling out his evoker. "These are special evokers, we can only use them in Tartarus, or in this place you call Memoteos as well to summon our persona. Otherwise, they're useless, see?" Minato said, pulling the trigger, but nothing happened.

"I see, that is a strange way to summon your persona," Morgana said.

"Fair enough. That's pretty much all I have. Now it's your turn" Minato said looking at Akira who nodded.

"Well, as you know, we're the Phantom Thieves. It started out as an accident, on my first day of school here, we got lost and wandered into a Palace" Akira explained.

"A Palace?" Minato asked.

"It's the twisted form of someone's desires. However, to have a palace, it would require an extremely strong desire." Morgana said.

"We can find them using the Meta Navigator, which we all have on our phones," Ryuji said,showing Minato the app.

"Woah...how do you get it?" Minato asked.

"Not really sure, it just appears on certain people's phones," Ann said.

"Huh...that is weird," Minato said.

"Anyway, in these palaces, are the cognitive version of the person's desires, or their shadow. The palace's form is how they see the world. Our goal is to take the treasure of these palaces, which represent the heart of the person's desires so that they will have a change of heart." Akira said.

"Change of heart?" Minato asked.

"Meaning they will confess to their crimes. However, it's not easy at all. We first need to find keywords to enter the person's palace. Then we must secure a route to their treasure and send a calling card to that person in real life. Only then will their treasure form and we can steal it the next day. After that, we wait and they usually have a change of heart" Makoto said.

"That does sound hard. But why are people talking about you like you guys are criminals?" Minato asked.

"It's because the change of hearts people have been so sudden and strange that they seem like someone is forcing them to admit it. That is why" Haru explained.

"I see..." Minato said but realized something. "That doesn't explain that weird place you were in earlier, was that a palace?" He asked.

"No that isn't. That is Memotoes, it's the combination of everyone's desires. While a palace is the form of an extremely strong desire,everyone's desires take the form of Memotoes. We take care of smaller requests in there'' Akira said.

"I see..." This was a lot for both sides to take in when Makoto spoke up.

"You mentioned your friends can use personas, do you think they can use them the same as you?" She asked.

"Yeah, as long as they have their evokers, they probably could use it in that place as well," Minato said. "However my powers are a bit different," Minato said.

"How so?" Futaba asked.

"I can use multiple personas, you weren't there but I was able to use multiple personas to defeat the shadows on my way to you," Minato explained

This surprised everyone as they looked to Akira and back at him. This confused Minato for a second before Ryuji spoke up.

"That's like Akira's power," Ryuji said.

"Really?" Minato said, surprised. He knew his power was special and only he had it,at least he thought so.

"Yes, I can use multiple personas. It's known as being a wildcard" Akira said.

Minato's eyes widen. That's what Igor called him.

"Do you think..." Minato said.

"I'm thinking what you're thinking," Akira said.

The others were confused.

"What's going on??" Futaba asked.

"I don't know..." Yusuke said.

"N-Nevermind, it's something private," Minato said knowing the others wouldn't get it. "Anyway, if you guys require help with the shadows, I'm more than willing to join you on these missions," Minato said.

"Really? That would be awesome!" Ryuji said.

"Someone as strong as Akira would definitely be useful in battle," Morgana said. "That sounds good!"

"I'll add you to the group chat," Akira said, adding his number to the group chat. "We'll let you know if we need you," He said.

"Sounds good," Minato said as he remembered something important. "Oh shoot...I don't have a proper weapon."

"That's fine, I can take you later to get a weapon. I know a guy who can sell us that stuff" Akira suggested. "But it's getting late, so we should end this," He said.

"Sounds good" Yusuke as everyone got up and soon headed out, Minato following the others out and chatting to them.

"It's great to have you on our team Minato-kun," Yusuke said. "By the way, how old are you?" He asked.

"I'm in my second year of high school," Minato said.

"Ah, so he's the same year as us!" Ann said.

"Also, by the way. What were you and Akira talking about? You guys like...had a moment or something" Futaba said.

"It's..hard to explain," Minato said simply.

Haru gasped. "Are you in love??" Haru said which caused Minato to blush.

"N-No! I-It's not like that! Just leave it!" Minato said very redly.

"You are blushing..." Ann pointed out.

"Of course I am, it's embarrassing," Minato said.

"Or is it because it's true?" Makoto said getting snickers from everyone, as everyone laughed. It was nice to be with these guys. Soon Minato waved to the others as he went his own way back from the hotel. He got a text from Akira as he looked at his phone.

_Akira: You know Igor, don't you?_

_Minato: Yeah, that means you have access to the Velvet Room too,right?_

_Akira: Yep, tomorrow we can go get you a new weapon and check the Velvet Room out_

_Minato: Sounds good_


	6. The Velvet Room

The next day, Minato met up with Akira in front of Leblanc. Morgana was still asleep so he left him there. They both took the train to Shibuya, talking on the way there.

"So where do you get your weapons from?" Minato asked.

"I get them from this guy I know, named Munehisa Iwai. He sells a variety of weapons, I'm sure he'll be able to find you something" Akira gave him a smile. "What kind of weapon did you use before?" He asked.

"A sword, kinda like a katana," Minato said as they arrived at the shop as Akira headed inside first. Minato saw a man with gray hair and a hat on, his legs on the counter as he was reading a book of some sort. He saw Akira.

"Ah, hey," Iwai said, noticing the smaller blue boy beside him. "Who's this?" He asked.

"This is Minato, a friend of mine. We were looking for a weapon for him, and I knew you would have the best" Akira said with a smile.

Iwai put his book down, sitting up. "What did you have in mind?" He asked.

"A sword, kinda like a katana" Minato spoke up.

"Hm, I don't have a lot of those, but I think I have the thing," Iwai said heading to the back and grabbing something. He came back with a katana in its case. It was like Minato's old weapon, but much nicer.

"That's perfect!" Minato said. "What do I owe you?" He asked.

"10673 yen," Iwai said as Minato looked shocked. He didn't have that much money on him at the moment as Akira pulled out exactly the amount he needed. "It's on me," Akria said, paying him.

Iwai took the money while Minato was still in shock. "A-Akira-" Minato started to say but was cut off.

"It's nothing, consider it as a gift," Akira said with a smile and Minato got the weapon from Iwai.

"T-Thank you, I don't know how to repay you," Minato said.

"It's nothing,really. I have a lot of money" Akira said. "I'll see you later," Akira said to Iwai.

"See you kid," Iawi said as Minato headed out first before Iwai called out to Akira.

"Hey kid, you seem to like that guy a lot," Iwai pointed out.

Akira blushed. "You could say that," He said before following Minato. Iwai sighed, going back to his book.

"Alright, now to the Velvet Room," Minato said as Akira nodded, following Akira to an alleyway, where Minato could see a blue door. Next to it stood a young girl in blue. To Minato, she looked like Elizabeth, except much younger. But her hair and eyes were the same colour, and despite their clothing style being different,they still wore the same royal blue.

"You see it too, right, the door?" Akira asked.

"Yep, but who is that?" Minato asked.

"That's Caroline, she's one of the assistants to Igor," Akria said.

"I...don't recognize her. The assistant I knew was an older girl named Elizabeth" Minato explained.

"Maybe Caroline will be able to explain it," Akira said approaching the door.

"Ah, welcome back inma-" Caroline said, seeing the new guy. "Who is this supposed to be??" She asked in an annoyed tone.

"My name is Minato, I know Igor. I made a deal with him as well" Minato explained.

"W-What?! How is this possible?" Caroline asked, confused.

"We don't know. But...you're his assistant right? Do you know anyone by the name of Elizabeth?" Minato asked.

"E-Elizabeth?? That's our sister...." Caroline said. "It seems best if you see Master Igor yourself," Caroline said as she opened the door, letting them in.

Akira went in first, Minato following as they both appeared in separate cells. Minato could still see Akira as he noticed that Akira's clothes had changed. "Your clothes..." Minato pointed out

"Yeah, it happens when I come in here" Akira explained going to the door of his cell.

"Caroline, who is this?" Justine asked.

"This is a friend of the inmate, it seems. He knows Elizabeth" Caroline said which shocked her sister.

"Girls, let me explain," Igor said from his table as Minato and Akira looked at him. "This is quite a strange surprise, I never expected two of the wildcard users to cross fates like this. This truly is fate" Igor said.

"Igor, what happened to Elizabeth?" Minato asked.

"Elizabeth had taken some time to herself, to learn more about herself. In place of her, are these two, Caroline and Justine." Igor said.

"It's a pleasure to meet you," Justine said.

'Yeah yeah, but how is this possible master? I thought it was impossible for two people with a contract to this room to ever cross" Caroline asked.

"That is what I thought. Wildcard users never meet one another in person, so seeing both of you here, means something important" Igor said.

"I see...." Akira said, looking at Minato.

"So does that mean I can use the Velvet Room like normal?" Minato asked.

"Of course, you have a contract with the Velvet Room, and while you are here, you can use this room similar to how Akira would," Igor said. "Caroline, Justine, this boy, Minato Arisato, is as well allowed to use the same services as our prisoner here," Igor told them.

"I see, it's a pleasure to meet you, new resident" Justine said while Carline glared at him.

"Is there anything else you need here? Otherwise, Justine and Caroline, escort them out" Igor said as they nodded.

Soon they were back in front of the blue door with Akira in his normal clothes.

"We'll be looking forward to seeing what you do in this room, new inmate," Caroline said.

"I-Inmate??" Minato asked.

"They call me that too," Akira said. "We'll see you two later," Akira said as they headed off, as it was late in the afternoon.

"What do you think Igor meant by when he said it was fate for us to meet?" Minato asked.

"Who knows? But if it was fate, I'm glad it happened" Akira said with a smile as Minato blushed a bit.

"Y-Yeah, I'm glad too," Minato said with a smile.

They both continued chatting as they headed back home.

Meanwhile, Ann and Ryuji had made a group chat to help get Akira and Minato together.

**_Operation Get Minato and Akira together!_ **

_Makoto: Uh..what is this?_

_Ann: It's obviously a secret group chat, to get Minato and Akira together._

_Futaba: Ohohoho I knew they were in love with one another._

_Makoto: With how they were looking at each other plus Minato blushing, it does make sense that they have feelings for one another._

_Yusuke: So how do we make them confess to it?_

_Ryuji: Simple, truth or dare. We have a hangout, invite Minato and just ask them using Truth or Dare._

_Futaba: For the dumbest one in the group, that's a good idea._

_Ryuji: Hey!_

_Haru: So we just need to confirm a date and time with them to hang out._

_Ann: Yep! Just don't tell either of them about this._

_Yusuke: Sounds good._

As Akira and Minato arrive back in Yongen-Jaya, they both got notifications from the Phantom Thieves Group chat.

_Ann: He guys, it's been a while since we relaxed, so why don't we take a break this weekend and hang out?_

_Akira: That sounds good._

_Ryuji: Awesome, is your place okay Akira?_

_Akira: Sure, I'm sure Sojiro won't mind. Is Minato allowed to come?_

_Makoto: Of course, he's allowed._

_Minato: Really? Thanks. What time will it be at?_

_Ann: How about 4 pm on Sunday?_

_Futaba: Sounds good to me. Now make sure to bring snacks and drinks_

_Haru: Leave that to me!_

_Yusuke: Then I think that's all we need._

_Ann: See you all then._

"Thanks for letting me come Akira," Minato said as they arrived at Leblanc.

"Of course, the others seem to like you a lot. I'll see you later" Akira said as they both headed their own ways.


	7. Kiss Me

Sunday came around fairly quickly for them and soon Minato was heading to Leblanc. Sure he and his friends hung out a ton, but this felt different, as it was with new people and the boy he had a crush on. He went inside and up to Akira's room where most of the others were already there.

"Hey, Minato!" Ann said.

"Hey guys, I brought snacks as well," Minato said, holding up a bag full of some chocolates and candies he bought before arriving here.

"Awesome, you're the best!" Ryuji said.

Soon everyone came, Haru bringing more snacks and drinks as they just relaxed, talking to each other and eating/ drinking until Ann and Ryuji gave each other a look, knowing it was time to begin their plan.

"Alright guys, let's play Truth or Dare!" Ann said.

"Ooh sounds fun, I never played it but I heard it was fun," Haru said.

Soon the truth or dare began, and it was a fun one, to say the least. They started off simple,from Yusuke and Ryuji switching shirts for 5 rounds for Haru telling her long and weird dreams. Soon it was Ann's turn and she knew what she needed to do.

"Akira, truth or dare?" Ann asked, looking at him.

Akira was that type of guy who always liked a challenge. "Dare," He said, ready for whatever he had to do.

Ann smirked, he fell right into their trap. "I dare you, to kiss Minato," She said as Minato blushed darkly.

"W-What?!" Minato said. "W-Why me??"

"Don't question it, he has to do it!" Futaba said as Ryuji already had his phone ready to take the picture.

"A-Akira, don't listen to them, you don't need to do it," Minato said, turning around to face the other as Akira leaned over and gave Minato a kiss on the cheek as Minato's face went beet red.

Akira pulled away. "You didn't say where!" He said as Minato was mentally and physically dying from that kiss. He didn't expect Akira to actually do it!

"Fair enough, you did kiss him," Ann said. Ryuji luckily had got the moment on camera so he could send it to him later. However, Minato wasn't even thinking about any of that, as the fact that Akira kissed him took over all his thoughts. Even if he tried shaking the thought off so he could focus on the party, the idea was still in his mind. Soon time flew by as it was around 9:30 pm and everyone was getting tired, so they started to pack up, waving to each other. Soon it was just Minato and Akira, with Morgana asleep on the table.

"Aren't you going to go?" Akira asked as Minato shook his head. He just needed to know the truth,as it was bothering him too much at that point.

"Akira...do you like me?" Minato asked, straightforward and to the point. Akira was surprised but at the same time, not really. Like, he just kissed him an hour or so ago.

"I...I do," Akira said, blushing. He couldn't help it, the other was adorable and he was such a nice guy. They only did know each other for weeks, but they were already falling for one another.

"R-Really?" Minato said blushing more,his heart thumping in his chest.

"Really," Akira said cupping the other's cheeks, which made Minato heat up more as Akira carefully moved the hair out of the way from his other eye, so he could see both of his eyes. "You have beautiful eyes by the way," Akira said with a smile.

"T-Thanks..." Minato said blushing. The other was so close, he could feel the other's breath on his lips. He wanted to kiss him so badly.

And so he did. Leaning in and closing the gap, Minato kissed Akira and Akira didn't hesitate to kiss back. Akira's hands continued to cup the other's cheeks while Minato's hands went around the other's neck. Minato could taste the chocolate on Akira's lips that he ate from earlier. Eventually, they pulled away as Akria couldn't help but smile, blushing.

"I love you Minato.," Akira said with a smile.

"I-I love you too," Minato said, quickly pulling his arms away, both agreeing to start dating. Minato never was a fan of romance, but now being with someone, it felt amazing. They agreed to plan their first date as soon as they could and with that, Minato headed home. As soon as he stepped out of the store, he was a blushing mess, internally screaming. He never felt his heart race this badly before but it felt amazing in the best way possible.

The next day, Minato woke up to multiple texts from the Phantom Thieves Group Chat. He looked at his phone to see what was up.

_Akira: For the last time guys, I'm not going tell you until Minato is okay with it._

_Ryuji: C'mon dude,if you are together I owe Ann 10 dollars._

_Ann: I'm telling you, that kiss must have meant something._

Minato decided to end their wait.

_Minato: We're dating, it's true._

_Akira: Geezes you scared me, when did you wake up?_

_Minato: Not too long ago._

_Makoto: That's great, I'm happy for you two._

_Ann: Hah! I was right._

_Ryuji: Damnit! I mean I'm happy for you two and all, but now I owe Ann $10._

_Futaba: You should've seen it coming._

Minato couldn't help but smile, texting the others. During their conversations, Akira decided to bring something up.

_Akira: Oh by the way, I got a couple more Mementos requests, so we should head there when we can._

_Yusuke: When do you suggest we should go?_

_Akira: How about tomorrow, around 1 pm?_

_Haru: Sounds good to be_

_Makoto: I agree_

_Ryuji: Then it's confirmed_

_Minato: See you all then_

_Ann: See you!_

Minato sat up in his bed with a smile, excited for the new day for once.


	8. Officially Apart of the Team

The next day, after everyone had arrived, Minato only then noticed he got the Metaverse App on his phone. "Hey guys, I have the Meta Navigator app too," Minato said.

"I guess now that you're an official part of the group, you can access the Metaverse as well," Makoto said.

"I guess so," Minato said glad as Akira got his phone out.

"Alright, let's go," Akira said as he used the app to teleport them. When they arrived, Minato felt...different. He felt something on his face as Futaba was the first to notice.

"Woah!" Futaba said as everyone turned around, just as shocked.

Minato's clothes had changed as now, he was wearing a white mask with blue gloves, and a long black coat with a blue undershirt with a red ribbon. He also had black pants and shoes to match them.

"Holy cow, you look amazing dude!" Skull said.

"I guess you truly are recognized as a Phantom Thief in the Metaverse" Fox said.

"Well if you are a Phantom Thief, you need a code name!" Mona said.

"Oh, how about Joker's boyfriend?" Ann teased, which made Joker and Minato blush. "No," They both said at once after calming down. Minato then got an idea.

"How about Weiss? It means white, kinda like the mask" Minato suggested.

"Yeah, that makes sense!" Oracle said.

"Then Weiss it is!" Noir said with a smile.

"I like the name," Joker said with a smile as Weiss smiled. "Alright, let's go," He said with a smile as they headed off into Mementos. 


	9. Writing Update!

Hello there everyone! You all must be confused seeing this since I never post any updates in books I'm writing, but this one is important, so listen up!

So as many of you know, school is beginning for me. (which I'm not looking forward to) With that, you all want to know how writing is going to continue. Well, I'm happy to say that I have plenty of content ready for the rest of the year, with regular weekly updates. This is how the updates will look like for the rest of the year:

1\. Set Me Free - 4 more chapters, updated once a week. It will finish on September 30th. 

2\. Monster - A SDRA2 Fanfic - 12 chapters, once a week. Will post Q&A on September 30th while the first chapter will be published on October 7th.

In terms of writing progress, I haven't made much on the second book for the SDRA2 Series. This is because I've been very busy trying to complete other things, like watching shows and RPs before school begins, since I won't have too much time for them then. I hope to continue slowly writing in throughout the school year, but I'm not making any promises as This year is going be stressful, as I have to think about applying to Universities and Colleges, but I can promise weekly content, so please do not worry. 

With that, thank you all for your support on my books. Whatever you are doing, I wish you the best and I will see you soon

Stay safe!

\- Admin


	10. The Date

A couple of days later, Minato was questioning everything as he sat in front of his new boyfriend, in a small restaurant, on a date. How did he get here? Well,let's recap

 _After the last_ Mementos _raid, Minato was planning to go home alone, when the other agreed to accompany him but not Akira. This confused him but he agreed, not minding as Minato first headed to do some shopping._

_"So..why did you all want to join me?' Minato asked, nervous about the smile on Ryuji's and Ann's face._

_"We want to help you on your first date dude!" Ryuji said which nearly made Minato choke on air._

_"We had heard you are planning your first outing together and we wanted to give our opinions," Yusuke said._

_"That's why you agreed to come with me...fine tell me what you got" Minato said,willing to listen._

_After a long shopping trip with date ideas from the others, they soon all head their own ways._

Bringing him back to the present day when he was shaken out of his thoughts from Akira calling his name.

"Minato! Are you okay??" Akira asked.

"A-Ah yeah.my bad!" Minato said, a bit embarrassed from spacing out so much. "Just got lost in my thoughts." He said as a waitress appeared with two menus. "Welcome boys, feel free to look at our menus and when you're ready to order, just call over one of the waitresses," She said.

"We will, thank you," Akira said with a smile as they both took a lot at the menu. This place had a lot of different food, from desserts to soups and more. Minato was glad Ann recommended this place, saying she wanted to go with another friend of hers.

"What do you want?" Akira asked,already having an idea in mind of what to pick.

"I really like sweets. How about you choose the meal and I choose the dessert?" Minato suggested.

"That sounds good, I have an idea of what to get. The spaghetti seems good." Akira said.

"And after we could share a chocolate and vanilla milkshake?" Minato asked.

"I like the sound of that," Akira said with a blush as he called over the waitress and ordered their food. The waitress headed off to get their order.

"So...," Minato spoke, unsure what to talk about. He hasn't been on a date before so this was all quite new to him.

"If you don't mind, I'm curious...how did you come to your persona powers?" Akira asked. "I figure we should both get to know that."

Minato couldn't lie, he did have a point. "Alright,I guess I'll go first," Minato said. "So...I came to Tatsumi Port Island after my relatives sent me there. My parents and sister died in an accident as a child...so I was tossed around by my relatives until I was old enough to live on my own" He said.

"Oh my, that's horrible. I'm so sorry" Akira said.

"It's not a big deal, I got over it. I was sent to live in the dorms, and there is where I met the others, Yukari, Junpei and everyone else. They figured I had the potential to use a persona, but they didn't fully know until I actually used it" Minato said. "That's pretty much it for me, what about you?" He asked.

"Well, mine's definitely a bit longer, so buckle up," Akira said. "I lived farther away from here, but one night I was coming home late and I saw a woman get assaulted by a man and I tried to stop him, but he tripped on himself and fell. I was blamed, sued, and expelled from my school. My parents sent me here on probation. That's why I live in the attic of Leblanc'' Akira explained. "After that, on my first day, Ryuji and I stumbled on the palace and that's where I discovered my powers.''

"Holy cow" Minato was really surprised. "You definitely had it worse, being blamed for something you didn't do."

"Yeah, it does suck. I guess we both have our fair share of bad memories, huh?" Akira said as their food arrived.

Minato was excited to eat but before he could eat, he noticed two familiar faces, attempting to hide behind newspapers a couple of seats away from them, but with no such luck. It was none other than Yukari and Junpei.

"Excuse me for a second, Akira," Minato said, getting up to go yell at them,annoyed that they followed him on his date.

Akira watched Minato do so and couldn't help but chuckle. It was quite funny to watch. Akira then noticed Minato had left his phone and couldn't help but think about a certain idea that had been lingering in his mind. Minato was strong, just as strong as Akira was, but if they brought him along to another palace, he would be at risk for being an accomplice of the Phantom Thieves, and he didn't want that, as Minato had a life in front of him. Akira knew what he needed to do,as he carefully took the other's phone, and luckily he didn't keep a passcode on his phone, as he muted the Phantom Thieves chat, so that Minato wouldn't get any notifications if they had to deal with palaces again.

"Forgive me Minato, I don't want to see you get hurt," Akira thought as he put the phone down back where it was just as Minato came back.

"Geez, those guys..." Minato said angrily yet clearly embarrassed.

"They were curious huh?' Akira asked

"Yeah, I swear to god...anyway, let's eat," Minato said.

They both continue having a lovely date, Minato not aware of what Akira did. What Minato and Akira didn't realize, that Akira's actions would have major consequences.


	11. Falling Apart

A week or so has passed, Minato and Akira going on more occasional dates, and Akira continuing to train with the others in Mementos. The others did ask where Minato was, but Akira would say he was busy or something along those lines. Minato also had been noticing that the others hadn't gone to Mementos in a while too, as he just assumed they were taking it easy. One day, Minato came to visit, planning to surprise Akira with a small gift that Mitsuru helped him pick out,which was a set of matching bracelets. Sojiro told him that Akira was in the attic with Futaba as he headed upstairs, but stopped when he heard them talking.

"You've been doing what!?" Futaba said in shock.

"Shh! Sojiro will hear you" Morgana said. Minato was curious so he stayed put and listened.

"Look, I'm doing it for him. You know as well as I do that Minato can't be an accomplice, he has a life in front of him. If we do get caught, and he gets involved, his life is over. We already put ourselves at risk, but I don't want him to risk his life" Akira explained.

Minato was confused and concerned. What did Akira do??

"So you muted his phone so he wouldn't get notifications from our Phantom Thief group chat? No wonder he hasn't come with us to Mementos these last couple of weeks" Morgana said.

Minato's eyes widened as everything now fell in place. He couldn't believe Akira had done something like that

"Soon we have to deal with Shido's palace, so I don't want him to get involved until this all passes by," Akira said.

"He'll be so mad Akira!" Futaba said. She wasn't wrong however, Minato was mad, and upset, Did Akira not trust him? Minato was finally starting to open up to someone and it turns out they were lying behind his back.

"You aren't wrong," Minato said as he opened the door to the attic, causing the three to jump as they saw Minato at the door.

"Oh god..." Akira mumbled.

Futaba gulped, knowing how upset Minato was just from his face. "I'm gonna leave you two alone, come on Mona," She said as they passed Minato and headed downstairs, leaving the two in silence.

"So, when were you going to tell me..?" Minato asked, not even looking Akira in the eye. He didn't want to.

"Minato...I-" Akira tried to explain before being cut off by Minato.

"I don't want to hear it!" Minato snapped which shocked Akira. "I...I trusted you. I wanted to help. You said yourself, I was one of you now. Not only as a Phantom Thief, but as your boyfriend, I wanted you to be open too. Yet you hid this all from me" Minato said. This was the first time in a long time that Minato truly felt like crying.

"Minato, I did it for you! You don't understand how dangerous this truly is" Akira said.

"I may not, but I want to! I can try to, and I have. Yet you didn't give me a chance...I finally opened up to someone and now, this is what happened" Minato said. "So much for this," Minato said, holding the box with their bracelets.

"What's that..?" Akira asked before Minato threw the box as Akira caught it.

"It doesn't matter anymore, I'm leaving," Minato said storming out of the cafe in near tears, passing by Sojiro, Morgana and Futaba.

"...Oh god" Futaba mumbled,knowing that they didn't have a good talk upstairs.

"What happened?" Sojiro asked.

"It's hard to explain, come on Morgana," Futaba said as they headed back up to the attic.

Akira had opened the box to see two bracelets. One was dark blue and the other was black,Akira's name engraved into the black bracelet in red and Minato's name engraved in silver on the blue bracelet. "What have I done...?" Akira thought to himself as he saw Futaba and Morgana.

"What happened..?' Futaba asked.

"What do you think?" Akira said being a bit sassy with his response,as he was upset at himself.

Back with Minato, he had gone back to his hotel room, luckily the others were out otherwise if they saw him like this, it would be more awkward. Minato wiped his tears as he unmuted the group chat, seeing a storm of messages, old and new.

_Akira: I messed up_

_Ryuji: ??_

_Yusuke: What happened Akira?_

_Akira: Do you know why Minato hasn't been coming to the latest meetings for Mementos? It was me,I muted the chat off his phone_

_Makoto: Why did you do that?_

_Akira: I was afraid! Unlike us, he hasn't been to a palace yet, people don't know about him. Shido's palace is next for sure, and what happens if we get caught? If he gets caught? He has a life in front of him, with friends of his own too. I don't want him to throw that away_

_Haru: I can see your reasoning, however, have you thought to talk to him before coming to a final answer?_

_Akira:...No_

_Futaba: He's pretty mad, from what I saw. We should give him some time_

_Ann: Good idea, we can talk to him a bit later. Are we still going to train tomorrow as you mentioned?_

_Akira: Yeah, I'll ask him if he wants to come_

_Yusuke: Are you aware that he is online? It says so_

_Akira: Well, Minato, if you are reading this, we'll be going to Mementos at 2 pm tomorrow. We'll meet at the normal place. I'm sorry for what I did_

Minato just turned off his phone, lying on his bed. He didn't want to talk to Akira tomorrow but needed to get his mind off of all of this, and fighting Shadows did tend to help. He decided to go early before the others could come, defeat some shadows and relax and leave before the others arrive.


	12. I'll Face Myself

The next day, he did so, heading to the normal spot around 15 minutes before everyone should arrive as he got his phone out and teleported to Mementos. When he first arrived, he noticed something clearly was off.

"My clothes...they didn't change...why?" Minato thought. He assumed it was just him as he headed into Mementos, not thinking much about it. It didn't take too long to encounter a shadow. Luckily it was an easy one, who was weak to fire, so all he needed was Orpheus.

"Come, Orpheus!" Minato said, putting the gun to his head and shooting, but nothing appeared, which confused him.

"W-What's going on!? Where's my Persona??" Minato thought, just as he dodged an attack just in time. Luckily Minato had his weapon as in a couple of solid swings, the enemy was dead.

"Why...can't I summon my Person??" Minato thought. He was confused as he decided to turn back to figure this out. Unfortunately, there were shadows blocking his way back, so he had to keep on going. Luckily he was good at sneaking around shadows so he managed to avoid most of them, and the ones he had to fight, he was able to defend off with his sword. Minato had tried to summon other personas, but couldn't even do that. He was so confused as he arrived at a room, figuring he could find some items, he opened the door and went in, keeping his eye for any shadows, until the door slammed shut behind him.

"You finally arrived..." A voice said as Minato turned around, sword ready as he saw a figure not too far away.

"W-Who are you?!" Minato said, as he knew that there were cognitive versions of people in here, thanks to Akira, but he didn't see the person's face. The figure turned around as Minato's eyes widened.

"I think you know the answer to that," The person said. It was Minato himself, except with golden eyes.

"No..." Minato said backing up, scared. He knew what this meant, and didn't want it to be true.

Back with Akira, the others had ju _s_ t teleported into Mementos when Futaba caught the sound of a scream coming from the depths of Mementos.

"Guys, I heard someone!" Futaba said, analyzing to see who it was.

"Someone else in Mementos..?" Joker said, confused. Was it Minato..? But they didn't see him come in.

"It's Minato, he's deep into Mementos, I pinned his location" Oracle said as Morgana transformed into the bus as everyone got him and Futaba led the way.

"Why did Minato go into Mementos by himself?? That's a crazy move" Skull said.

"Maybe he wanted to practice by himself?" Noir said.

"Maybe, but we should focus on seeing what happened," Joker said. He was worried, why did Minato go alone? He knew it was dangerous.

Soon the team arrived in front of a door deep into Mementos.

"I can sense him in this room, but it also seems that there's a shadow in there too! So be careful" Oracle said as Joker opened the door and headed inside with the others, as the sight they all saw was something they never expected.

Minato was on the ground, sitting up as he was beaten badly but still conscious, his weapon not too far away as the Shadow Version of himself was standing not too far in front of him, spinning his own version of a gun.

"Minato!" Joker said as they all ran over to him as Joker and Skull helped him up.

"Y-You guys..." Minato said softly as Joker used a healing item to help him restore some of his HP.

"Well well, the Phantom Thieves finally decide to show up?" The Shadow Version of Minato said as everyone looked at him.

"Minato...you have a shadow?" Queen said.

"Of course he does, with those kinds of thoughts running in his head, it wouldn't be much of a surprise to anyone" Shadow Minato said.

"What is he talking about Minato?" Joker asked as Minato simply looked down, staying silent.

"Of course he won't tell you, so I'll have to explain for him. You betrayed him, Joker. Your lie to him had brought back so many memories, and so many thoughts" Shadow Minato said

"Don't..." Minato said softly. He didn't want them to know.

"What kind of thoughts?" Fox asked.

"Glad you asked! Where do I begin..? How about the truth that Minato didn't want to face? He's isn't going to stay here forever, he has to go back to Tatsumi Port Island, and with that, break the one true romantic relation he had in his life. But to be honest, we both knew it was coming. We knew it was too good to be true. We never had this good of a relationship before, either it was going to end soon, or that it was fake. Guess it was a bit of both huh?" Shadow Minato said, looking at the other.

"S-Stop it!" Minato said as he stepped away from Joker's hand on him.

"But why? There's so much more!" Shadow Minato said with a smirk.

"You aren't me, stop saying those things!" Minato said.

The Shadow glared at Minato as he sighed. "You never learn huh, guess it's come to this" Shadow Minato said as dark smoke surrounded it as Minato stepped back, feeling dizzy as Minato suddenly passed out.

"W-Woah!" Joker caught him before he hit the floor as Minato's shadow turned into Thanatos, except that the coffins on each of his back had a different colour.

"Get ready guys! Here it comes!" Oracle said.

"Noir, Mona, keep Minato safe!" Joker said as Panther, Skull, Fox and he took the front line.

Oracle attempted to scan for weaknesses, but she couldn't find any. "Bad news guys, I can't find any weaknesses but I have his health stats, and he's powerful, so be careful. I suggest that you use physical and gun attacks to keep your SP in case."

"Sounds good!" Skull said as they all got their weapons.

As the others dealt with the Shadow, Queen used a revival bead on Minato, hoping it might help him wake up. Minato started to open his eyes.

"Ah, you're awake," Noir said.

"W-What.." Minato was confused as he sat up, seeing the fight happen in front of them. "My Shadow..." He said. He knew that this was his fault,as it was his shadow. "I'm sorry..." He said softly.

"Minato you don't need to be sorry, it's normal to feel this way," Noir said. "We just wished we could've helped."

Minato looked down, but before he could speak he heard a loud noise as he saw Joker get knocked down.

"Joker!" Fox said as he used a healing item to heal him.

"Damn his Persona is strong, he can use every element," Skull said.

"Makes sense, his wildcard skills manifest into his shadow and personas," Oracle said.

Minato got up, trying to form some kind of idea to help them.

"Minato wait, you can't fight in the state you are!" Queen said.

"But I can't let you guys do everything..." Minato said, then had an idea, as he pulled out his special S.E.E.S gun. "This might be the only way...but I have an idea" Minato said as he saw Joker just healed again from Fox. "Akira, try this!" Minato said, throwing him the S.E.E.S gun.

Joker turned around and caught the gun, and as soon as he touched it, he put the gun to his own head,as if he had down it many times before.

"Come, Messiah!" Akira said shooting himself as the new Persona appeared in front of him.

"Woah..." Panther was amazed at the new power as Oracle analyzed Joker's new stats.

"Wow, that persona is amazing! This might be your key to beating this shadow!" Oracle said.

"Then let's go, guys!" Joker said.

With the new power and persona, they were able to defeat the Shadow as it reverted to its original form as Minato, with the golden eyes. Joker was quite exhausted from the sudden new power as he was breathing heavily.

"You okay?' Skull asked.

"Yeah, I'm good," Joker said as they looked at Minato, who was happy to see they were able to defeat it.

"Minato, are you alright?" Joker asked.

"I-I'm fine...I'm sorry, this was my fault," Minato said.

"No,I should be the one to apologize," Joker said. "I was the one to let my thoughts get the better of me, I should've told you how I felt before making a choice on my own," He said as he looked at the Shadow. "You know what you need to do" Joker gave him back his gun as Minato put it back.

Minato nodded as he walked over to the shadow version of himself, who just stayed quiet.

"I shouldn't have denied you.." Minato said to him. "I was just afraid, for so long I never felt love from anyone. I never knew my parents, my relatives always tossed me around. I didn't have anyone. Even the relations I made never lasted or they felt fake. I always wasn't afraid to die, because I wouldn't be missed. But now...I found someone who loves me, for who I am. Should I still be afraid of love?" Minato asked the Shadow as it smirked softly.

"That's up to you," The Shadow said as it offered his hand. Minato took it, and with that, it disappeared into golden dust as Minato felt dizzy, before passing out as everyone went over, Fox and Skull picking him up.

"He was probably mentally tired," the Queen said. 'We should head back."

Everyone nodded and headed back to the entrance, and teleported back to the real world.

"I can take him back home," Akira offered.

"You sure?" Haru asked as everyone knew he was tired from the new powers he unlocked.

"Yeah, I'll be fine," Akira said as he took Minato and helped him to the hotel. Luckily his key was in his pocket as Minato unlocked the door and laid him on the bed inside his room.

"Sweet dreams Minato," Akira said, kissing his forehead as he headed out.


	13. Seasons of Love

The next day, Minato woke up to the sun shining on his face as he yawned. He hasn't slept that well in a while as he sat up, taking his phone as he saw a message.

 _"Morning Minato, when you are ready, wanna hang out? We have a lot to talk about"_ \- Akira

Minato smiled softly, knowing that he had a reason to live now. A Reason to Love

Minato ended up working his issues with Akira, as he knew no relation was going to be perfect, but he was willing to try his best.

He agreed that they could have a long-distance relationship until they graduate and then they could move in together. Minato's friends were very supportive of the idea and agreed to help in any way they could.

For the first time, Minato wasn't afraid of love, and things were going to be different, but in a good way. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you so much for all the support! For every kudos,read, and comment. I may not see them all, but they mean so much and make writing worth it! Please look forward to the next book, an SDRA2 Fanfic that is my second series coming out soon!
> 
> Stay safe!
> 
> \- Admin


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